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Sudan
Gold Mine Collapse Kills 38
At least 38 people were killed on Tuesday by a gold mine collapse in West Kordofan province, Sudan, in the village of Fuja. Sudanese authorities reported at least 8 people were injured when multiple shafts collapsed at the Darsaya mine. The mine was officially closed, however some locals continued to work the mines when security forces left the area. Sudan is a major producer of gold with numerous mines across the country, yielding 36.6 tons of gold in 2020 alone. Although the current transitional government has started regulating the industry, safety standards are still not widely observed.
This map depicts the location of the gold mine collapse in West Kordofan province, south of the capital city of Khartoum in Sudan. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: VOA
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Brazil
Severe and Widespread Flooding
Over 116 cities have declared a state of emergency within the state of Bahia, Brazil, due to widespread and severe flooding. The area has been bombarded with rain since November, with yearly precipitation in 2021 being five times higher than the average. According to officials, the flooding has displaced more than 43,000 people and 21 people have died this month alone. The situation has become worse in recent days as two dams collapsed near the towns of Jussiape and Itambe over the last weekend, and at least five more dams are in danger, with more rain in the forecast.
This map depicts the areas impacted by severe flooding in Bahia, Brazil, including cities that have declared a state of emergency. Click on the map to learn more.
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Graphic Source: UOL
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United States
First Giant Animal Fossil Found
A fossil of the earliest giant animal ever found, an ichthyosaur, was extracted from a Triassic-aged rock layer outcrop in the Augusta Mountain region of Nevada. The skull, backbone, shoulder, and forefin announced this past week came from an individual animal about the size of a sperm whale. This fossil was named ‘C. youngorum’ and represents a highly successful group of ancient marine reptiles that reached up to 60 feet (18 m) in length and weighed in at 40 tons (36 metric tons), 4.5 times larger than the weight of a Tyrannosaurus Tex. These reptiles swam Earth’s oceans between 250-90 million years ago. The species was a biological marvel, showing that ichthyosaurs evolved to such a massive size in just a few million years, far faster than it took whales to evolve to their gargantuan sizes today. This species also survived the end-Permian mass extinction. The first fossil remains of C. youngorum were unearthed in Nevada in 1998.
This map depicts the area in Nevada where the ichthyosaur fossil that was recently announced was uncovered. It is the largest animal fossil found from that or any prior time period. Click on the map to learn more.
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Q: Australia may be completely surrounded by water, but it does not have the longest coastline. In fact, six other countries have a longer coastline than Australia, can you name them?
A: Canada, Indonesia, Greenland, Russia, Phillippines, Japan
Australia, the island country/continent in Oceania, has a total coastline of 16,000 miles (25,760 km). Japan’s 18,485 mile (29,750 km) coastline borders the country’s 6,582 islands. The Philippines, with 7,641 islands, has a coastline of 22,550 miles (36,289 km). Russia, with a slightly longer coastline of 23,400 miles (37,652 km), is the largest country in the world and shares shorelines with the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans, as well as the Baltic, Black, Caspian, and Azov seas. Located in between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, Greenland’s coastline stretches 27,400 miles (44,086 km). With Indonesia’s vast number of islands, it ranks second amongst countries with the longest coastline at about 34,000 miles (54,716 km). Lastly, Canada holds the record for the longest coastline at 125,570 miles (202,080 km) long, with shores meeting the Pacific, Atlantic, and Arctic oceans.
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Q: Where is this famous river bend that began to form about 200 million years ago through the process of erosion?
Stay tuned for the answer to today’s question in tomorrow’s DailyGeo.
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